During a meeting with farmers and residents from Clonbrook and Supply Village on the East
Coast of Demerara, Agriculture Minister disclosed that many investors have signaled their
readiness to invest in Guyana’s agriculture sector.
The minister further stated that while the government has been working assiduously to develop
the sector, it is also working to link existing farmers with investors desirous of executing large-
scale projects.
“Many of you have land. Hundreds of acres of land but you are unable to plant on a large scale.
The ministry has been engaging investors; large investors who want to invest in Guyana’s
agriculture sector. We can link you with those investors. They have the capital and you have the
land. So, you can work with them to get these large projects going rather than have the land
underutilized,” Minister Mustapha explained.
The minister also said that the government has been working to empower farmers and make
more income-earning opportunities available to them. Rather than going through the process
of identifying new lands, Minister Mustapha said that for farmers who have existing farmlands
and are looking to get involved in large-scale cultivation of high-value and other lucrative crops,
the ministry can facilitate linkages with the investors.
While addressing concerns raised about drainage and irrigation, Minister Mustapha said that
the ministry through the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) will continue with its
work programme of desilting the canals in the area. He also said once that phase is complete,
contracts will be awarded to the various farmers’ groups to carry out manual maintenance of
the canals. He further stated that the maintenance of the canals must not involve the use of
chemicals.
“Persons are saying that the contractors who are supposed to be maintaining the canals are still
using chemicals to spray the canals. I want to make it clear, if we find anyone spraying the
canals those contracts will be taken away and those contractors will have to compensate the
farmers because when you spray the canals you are also destroying the farmers’ crops,”
Minister Mustapha explained.
He also said officers from the National Agriculture Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) will
be meeting with farmers in the coming week to discuss expanding crop production and
productivity. Minister Mustapha also told the farmers that all of the planting material needed
for the expansion will be made available free of cost.
Minister Mustapha was accompanied by MoA’s Director General, Madanlall Ramraj, and other
senior officers from the Ministry.
